Always, from the moment your feet leave the ground until they are back on it. That includes climbing up, setting or removing the stand, sitting, and climbing down. Falls from tree stands are a leading cause of serious hunting injuries, and many happen during the climb or the transition onto and off the platform, before or after the hunter is “in the stand.”
What a fall-arrest system includes
A full-body harness. Not a simple belt or chest strap, which can cause serious injury or suffocation in a fall. Choose one certified to the Treestand Manufacturers Association (TMA) standard, and check the weight rating against your weight with gear.
A tree strap or tether connecting the harness to the tree above your head when seated, with minimal slack.
A lifeline (safety rope) with a sliding prusik knot or friction hitch, attached from the ground to the stand height. You connect to it before you start climbing and slide it up with you, so you are protected continuously.
A suspension relief strap that lets you stand in a loop after a fall.
Credit : Maslowski Steve
Why suspension relief matters
Hanging motionless in a harness can cause suspension trauma: blood pools in the legs and a person can lose consciousness, sometimes within minutes. After a fall:
Deploy the relief strap and stand in it to take weight off the leg straps.
Pump your legs to keep blood moving.
Call for help; carry a phone or radio within reach on your body, not in a pack on the stand.
Have a plan for getting down or back onto the stand.
Safe climbing habits
Use a haul line to raise and lower your bow, firearm (unloaded) and gear. Never climb with them.
Keep three points of contact on ladders and climbing sticks.
Inspect everything before each season and each hunt: straps, buckles, stitching, ropes. Replace a harness after any fall or by the manufacturer’s expiration date.
Never use homemade stands or old permanent wooden platforms.
Tell someone your hunting location and return time.
Practice putting on the harness and using the relief strap at ground level first.
The rule to remember
Put the harness on at the truck, connect before your first step up, and stay connected until both feet are on the ground. Many state wildlife agencies and the Treestand Manufacturers Association offer free online tree stand safety courses and videos. For other emergency basics, see how CPR feedback devices improve chest compressions.
